Report: 2015 Toyota Hydrogen Car to Cost Between $50,000 and $100,000

Toyota is taking a bath on its hydrogen vehicle development program. Going on sale in 2015, the car whose technology once cost more than $1 million per unit will come down between $50,000 and $100,000 when it goes on sale in two years' time. We think it will be even lower, though.According to Automotive News, Toyota's Chris Hostetter, vice president of strategic planning in the U.S., said the cars would be arriving with fuel cell technology costing about $50,000, putting the price of the car between $50,000 and $100,000. According to Motor Trend, the car might cost six figures, but its price is set to be around $50,000, or the same as a 2013 Toyota RAV4 EV.We've driven the Toyota FCHV-adv Highlander prototype, which Toyota says is a generation behind what's going to be on sale by 2015. The car will first be on sale in California, where the California Air Resources Board is looking to expand hydrogen infrastructure across the state to as many as 68 stations in two years. Currently, California has eight stations in use. We expect the car to look similar to the 2015 Toyota FCV-R concept that debuted at the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show and we saw as recently as this year's Detroit Auto Show in January.Toyota would like to see the sales mirror the first-generation Toyota Prius', which launched in the U.S. in late-1997. That would translate into about 11,000 sales. Today, the Toyota Prius is among the best-selling vehicle lines in the world, which tells you that there is room for alternative-fuel technology.Recently, we sat down with Justin Ward, the lead engineer on Toyota's hydrogen program, who assured us that Toyota is in the hydrogen game to make a profitable vehicle, noting that he remembered when lecturers at universities said that the Prius would never make money. With the economies of scale Toyota enjoys, we don't think the company is too ambitious in thinking that the 2015 hydrogen car will be anything less than the success Toyota is planning.Read our report: "Building Tomorrow's Toyota: We Go Behind Closed Doors to Discover the Future of Toyota."Source: Automotive News (Subscription required)

New Car Price QuoteFind the best car prices using our free quote tool.

This isn't too surprising. Hydrogen power would be great from an environmental and economic perspective if they could bring the cost of production down. Judging from the article, that'll be some time before the average consumer could consider driving one.

The tech is so expensive as its relatively new to production cars to feature, bit pointless if a few people have them but the rest of people who can't afford them are going to be canceling out their contributions.
Until the manufacturing of the tech comes down in price it won't be easily accessible to the masses!